19 years old and ready to jump into the real estate investing game!

[Colin Frank]

Hello everyone, my name is Colin. I am a 19 year old that is just getting started in the real estate investing game! I work a full time job at a wood shop building custom cabinetry. Ever since I was a toddler my parents have been investing in real estate. Weather it's helping with a fix and flip or mowing multiple rental properties' lawns, I've been around my parents real estate journey my whole childhood. Right now I rent one of their properties with a couple roommates and I've been looking to buy my own place. Luckily my mother is a realtor and just a couple of weeks ago we came across a duplex that was off the market and was about to go into foreclosure. We put in an offer and it got accepted. We close on 1/10/2025 and I'm super excited! My plan is to live on the upper unit and rent a room out to a buddy and turn the lower unit into a midterm rental. The property is in the middle of town and is close to the hospitals, so I figured that a midterm rental would be the best route. I've listened to a ton of episodes of the Real Estate Rookie Podcast and the Bigger Pockets Real Estate Podcast. I am very excited and nervous to start my investing journey and wanted to come onto the forums to ask for any tips or guidance before I jump in. 

Thank You! 

[Colin Frank]

Quote from @Bonnie Low:

Hey, Colin! Congratulations on getting started so early and being creative about your acquisition. Having your background and connections is going to serve you well. I love the idea of jumping in with a duplex. If you haven't already, you should research the stats on Furnished Finder to see how many people are looking for a midterm rental, how many units are currently available and the configuration and prices hosts are offering. Here's the link for your city https://www.furnishedfinder.com/stats?ci=Bismarck&st=Nor...

This will help you determine how much demand there is and whether or not you can charge enough to cover your expenses and hopefully produce some cash flow for you. FF isn't the only source, of course, but it is one of the most well know. Zillow is listing more and more furnished units now as well. 

Good luck to you and, again, congrats on getting started so early. You're way ahead of the game!

 Thanks Bonnie for the reply! I definitely planned on using Furnished Finder to fill out the midterm rental. I didn't know that I could view stats on FF in my city, I'll for sure have to check that out.